Broncos, Raiders feel extra intensity

ENGLEWOOD — Even though Jake Plummer has only been with the Denver Broncos for two seasons, the Denver quarterback has quickly learned what the rivalry with the Oakland Raiders means to Denver’s fans.

“Some fans, that’s all they want you to do is beat the Raiders,” Plummer said. “That’s it. They don’t care whatever happens as long as you beat the Raiders. We know that going into this game there is going to be a lot of people rooting against the (Raiders) and rooting for us.”

So when the Raiders and Broncos face off 6:30 p.m. tonight in a nationally-televised game at Invesco Field at Mile High, the rivalry between the two teams still means something to the Denver Broncos even though the two teams are headed in opposite directions in the AFC West standings.

While the Broncos are tied with San Diego atop the AFC West standings with a 7-3 record, the Raiders are in the cellar with the Kansas City Chiefs at 3-7.

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Still, the Broncos feel that extra intensity that has come to be known as “Raiders Week” every time the two teams play.

“It is a different attitude in the coaches and the players, and it transfers over into game day,” Denver running back Reuben Droughns said. “The attitude is so much different than maybe if you are playing the Atlanta Falcons or somebody like the Cincinnati Bengals. When you play the Raiders, you have got to step up to your ‘A’ game.”

Maybe that is because Denver coach Mike Shanahan won’t let his team forget the rivalry which is always special to him since being fired as the Raiders coach four games into the 1989 season and then being stiffed $250,000 owed him by Raiders owner Al Davis.

Or maybe it is because no matter when these two teams play, there always seems to be bad blood, including this year’s matchup in Oakland when Denver Broncos running back Reuben Droughns and Raiders defensive tackle Warren Sapp got into a war of words on the field in which Sapp called Droughns “a punk.”

“I am probably a little punk,” Droughns said. “I haven’t played as long as Warren, and obviously, he has played a lot longer than me, so he has a right to say that.”

Even so, it’s one in a long line of spats between the two organizations that seem to keep the rivalry as intense as ever.

And even though the Broncos have had just as many intense games with division rivals Kansas City and San Diego in recent years, it has not diminished the rivalry the two teams have shared since their days together in the American Football League.

“For the Raiders, it seems that lust will never come off,” said Shanahan, who is 15-4 lifetime versus the Raiders. “We’ve had some excellent games and some very physical games through the years. We’ve won some close games. I think when you’ve had those types of games that you really don’t lose it. It’s always been a natural rivalry. Maybe for some of the guys that haven’t been here, they don’t know how deep it goes, but they’ll learn.”